Mere perception of a republican sweep causes enemy probing.

Biden dropped out as polls indicated a Trump victory, and the possibility of a Republican sweep. BCA Research, commenting before the weekend developments, said with Republicans favored to win, some countries may be enticed to act before the next president takes office.

BCA said Iran and Israel, for instance, may feel less reason for restraint, and inflame an already unstable Middle East.

JP Morgan strategists in a recent note said the situation in the Middle East has not been disruptive for global markets yet, but escalation could change that.

“The increasing likelihood of a multipolar world in the decades ahead leads us to focus on adding armor to portfolios aligned with security objectives—namely investing in both traditional and cyber defense, energy, and supply chains,” they wrote.

Cyber names include Palo Alto Networks, Zscaler, Fortinet, and Cloudflare. CrowdStrike was a leading company in the group, but its outlook is uncertain after a software update gone wrong last week contributed to a global outage and thousands of canceled flights. There are also cybersecurity ETFs including iShares Cybersecurity and Tech ETF and Global X Cybersecurity ETF.

Trump is promising tariffs across the board on U.S. imports. They could strain relations with allies. He has also made no secret of his dislike of NATO, which has been united in its stance behind Ukraine in its war with Russia.

“Russia may or may not interfere now that Republicans have taken the lead. But Ukraine clearly has an incentive to entangle the next administration in the war, since it will otherwise be abandoned,” BCA noted.

The perception that Biden is weak could prompt others to seize the moment.

The Democrats also have taken aim at Chinese trade policies, and both parties look set to continue to pressure China.

Reports last week that the Biden administration was planning new restrictions on semiconductor exports to China sent chip stocks sharply lower.

China could increase the pressure on Taiwan during the final months of the Biden administration or take its own retaliatory trade measures.